Rio 3 Fanmade Novelization
by Ry Leo
Summary: A novelization-in-progress of Rio 3. A year has passed since their unexpected arrival at the Spix's Macaw Tribe, and summer befalls Brazil. Blu starts to miss Linda since she was relocated to HQ a few months ago, so their family decide to head to Rio de Janeiro to celebrate Carnival and visit her. However, not one, but two threats emerge at the same time, both threatening trouble.
1. Chapter 1 - Suspicious Activity

At the main office at the Blu Bird Sanctuary's headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, Blu's former owner, Linda and her ornithologist husband, Tulio scrutinize a high-resolution image of the Amazon Rainforest taken via orbital satellite which was displayed on an incredibly large TV screen to see if there were any intelligible changes in the landscape and noted changes in the population of the species living there. The office was spacious, but most of the space was occupied by cutting-edge monitoring technology, each system equipped with a computer screen, some showing live CCTV footage in enclosed aviaries for critically endangered species, others displaying various types of data – one screen showed the status of an expedition team dispatched to perform a survey on wildlife population, though strangely enough a few screens showed Linda's Facebook, Instagram and Twitter page (she _absolutely_ refused to leave the screen off when she is in the office). Although a year has passed since the loggers were gone, they were still on edge and checked the live satellite imagery daily, leaving no pixel of the imagery untouched.

"I kind of miss Blu, even though it's only been two months since we were relocated to Headquarters." said Linda.

"I'm sure he's okay. He's not alone anymore. He - _they_ have the Spix's Macaw Tribe to look after them and keep them company."

After a short moment of silence and more scanning, Tulio breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, looks like sector A-1 to D-4 are clear." Tulio summarized.

At that moment, Fernando, their adopted child, bursts through the door into the office after examining the birds in the aviaries.

"Hi! I just finished checking up on the birds in the aviaries. The enclosures for the _Anodorhynchus glaucus_ macaws- Hey, what's that?" said Fernando, pointing to a sector of the screen.

Linda sighed. "Fernando, for the last time, _no_ , you cannot play Match 3 Party on this computer."

Fernando gave her a questioning look. "Uh, not that. Look, on the screen."

Linda and Tulio turned to where he was pointing to.

"Oh, that? That's nothing. Just a dense spot of vegetation. What do you see?" asked Tulio.

"Something odd. There doesn't seem to be much wildlife in sector D-5 as the other sectors have. There doesn't seem to be as much blurred red dots – which would indicate Scarlet Macaws - on the screen as there were. Look." Fernando stepped toward the system's motion interface rig, highlighted the sector and ran an image analyser program.

A chart filled the screen with other information along the edges of the screen as the image analyser processed the information. Linda and Tulio kept an eye on the main chart while noting the program's progress. Fernando was right; there doesn't seem to be as much Scarlet Macaws, Blue-throated Macaws and other wildlife in the area as there once were. Something was disturbing the wildlife there. Although the affected area wasn't too close to the Spix's Macaw Tribe's nesting grounds, something about the lack of wildlife there bothered them.

"Good catch, Fernando! We'll see what we can find out. I think that the archives of _Livraria Blu_ may have something about this. We'll do some research and see what else we can find out about this... occurrence." said Linda.

"Okay, let me know if you find anything!" said Fernando.

Linda and Tulio gave each other a concerned glance, and headed to _Livraria Blu_ to do some research. Something told them that this mysterious occurrence might be the start of something big.


	2. Chapter 2 - The Macaws

A year has passed since their arrival at the Spix's Macaw Tribe-

"Actually, it's precisely… 203 days since we arrived at the Tribe," interjected Bia.

Ah, thanks Bia! And summertime now falls upon the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil. In one of the Sanctuary's largest tree hollows, a particular family of Spix's Macaws continue their everyday lives in the jungle, enjoying their now-wild lives: Blu and Jewel discuss about several matters; Carla, their oldest and most artistic daughter, contemplates a few dance moves for the upcoming Carnival festival; Bia, the most intelligent and resourceful of her brood, closely examines a butterfly, comparing it with a specimen in her pop-up book about the Amazon Rainforest, while Tiago, the youngest yet most mischievous of the three, talks with a friend of his, Stacie.

"I miss Linda." admits Blu.

"It's already a few months since she and Tulio left the jungle. What's wrong?" said Jewel.

"Nothing! I just… I'm just so used to having her around that… I feel uncomfortable without her presence." said Blu.

At this, Jewel turns to look at Blu, and couldn't resist giving him small smile.

"Are you suggesting... something?" Jewel said.

Blu turns to meet her playful gaze, and remembers something she said last year, when Carla, Nico and Pedro hosted "Amazon Untamed".

"Yes… Yes! That's perfect! When do you think we can go?" said Blu.

"Right now, if you want to," said Jewel.

Blu gasped. "What? Right now? But.. but…"

Jewel sighed. "Yes, yes, I know. "But we can't just pack up and go." Just gather everything you need for your fanny pack, and I'll tell the kids to pack up while you go get Nico, Pedro and Rafael."

"Are you forgetting someone else…?" suggested Blu.

Jewel thought for a moment, then shook her head. "No, why?"

"I think that it's best if your dad came along, you know, show him around… How we met…" Blu said.

"Oh, that's a great idea! I'll go see if he agrees to come." Jewel agreed.

"I'll go get Nico, Pedro and Rafael. Be back in 5 minutes!" Blu said, flying out of the nest.

"Good luck, sweetie!" Jewel called after him, then turned to the kids, who were looking at her excitedly. Apparently, they had eavesdropped on the last few parts of their conversation.

"Is it for real?" asked Tiago.

"Ooh! Ooh! I heard that Menelaus Blue Morphos are migrating to Rio de Janeiro this time of the year!" supplied Bia.

"I'll also need some inspiration to complete my dance routines for Carnival! Please?" said Carla.

Jewel couldn't resist smiling. Sometimes, the kids were just too sweet.

"All right, all right, yes, we are in fact going back to Rio." announced Jewel.

"Yeah!" cheered Carla, Bia and Tiago, already scrambling to pack up.

"But hurry! Dad's already going to get Uncle Nico, Pedro and Rafael! We're leaving soon! I'll go see if Pop-Pop wants to come." said Jewel before she leaves the nest.

A little while later, she found Eduardo perched on a nearby tree branch, admiring the Brazil nut grove. The grove had grown substantially since the loggers left last year, so the macaws – and their neighbouring tribe, the Scarlet Macaw Tribe – now had an abundant food supply. Jewel gently landed beside her, greeting him with a "Morning, daddy!".

Eduardo replied her greeting with a dignified smile, then noticed that she looked more excited than usual.

"Is something the matter?" asked Eduardo.

"Yeah. Me, Blu, the kids, Nico, Pedro and Rafael are going to Rio for the summer, and Blu wants you to come too! You know, show you around and how me and Blu met…" said Jewel.

He paused momentarily. "When?"

"As soon as the kids pack up and Blu gets Nico, Pedro and Rafael."

Eduardo was stunned. A trip? To Rio? His fear and distrust of humans is no longer a problem – thanks to Blu, but…

"But… but the Tribe will be without a leader. I can't leave the tribe leaderless!"

"You can ask Felipe to look after the Tribe for the time being. You can trust him. Just ask Aunt Mimi and Roberto. I'm sure they'll also agree!" said Jewel.

Eduardo sighed. Assuming she hadn't changed from her old personality as a young chick, even if he found a million ways to say "No", she'll still find a billion ways to overcome them. "Fine, I'll see if he agrees. If he does, then I'll go."

Jewel was overjoyed. She quickly said "Thanks, dad! I'll go oversee the kids' packing." and flew off.

A few minutes later, Blu, Jewel, Carla, Bia, Tiago, Nico, Pedro, Rafael and Eva are gathered at the nest (poor Luiz and Kipo had to wait at the tree's base since the nest's entrance wasn't large enough to squeeze the both of them in, so they were _barely_ able to hear what they said), making sure that they have prepared everything they will need for the journey.

"Whistle, check! GPS, check! Band-Aids, check! Breath mints… Sure, why not? Water purifier, check! Utility knife… Hang on…" came the voice of Blu from his room.

At that moment, Eduardo flew into the nest with his own fanny pack.

"Hello, Pop-Pop!" greeted Carla, Bia and Tiago enthusiastically.

Eduardo replied with a nod and turned to Jewel.

"Thankfully, Felipe made the deal a lot easier than I thought. He was bored and looking for something to do, so I asked him to oversee the Tribe while we're in Rio. However, he tells me that something has been going on in his territory. The members of his tribe seem to be evacuating from an area for unknown reasons, though he has no doubt that it has nothing to do with us, and that it may be bad. I just hope he doesn't turn my nest's rooms into a mess, which I'm pretty sure he probably will anyway. I also assigned Mimi and Roberto to help him." said Eduardo.

Jewel laughed briefly, then asked "A fanny pack?".

Eduardo momentarily looked confused, then glanced down and realized that he was wearing it, then shrugged. "Why not? I didn't put anything in it, but we might need some storage space for things that we might gather during our vacation."

As if on cue, Blu's head popped out of his room.

"Got it! Now, who's – Oh, hi, Eduardo!" He turns to the others, then continues. "I checked everything three times, and that's… probably all that I'll need for the trip." Blu summarized.

"Okay then, is everyone ready?" asked Jewel.

"Yeah!" came the travellers' reply, apart from Nico and Pedro, who instead said "You bet I am!".

"Let's go!"

On that signal, everyone spread their wings and flew out of the nest in a stream of colours, bound for the _Céu Azul_ riverboat which will take them to Manaus, the first city they will encounter on their journey to Rio. Kipo took off, carrying Luiz, frantically flapping his wings under the heavy load that he was barely able to lift. "Ugh! Everyone, wait up!"


	3. Chapter 3 - A Discussion

As sunset approached rapidly, they landed on the riverboat to rest for the night in preparation for the next day's travels, admiring the endless expanse of vegetation surrounding them and the partially clouded skies. When the others weren't watching, Jewel pulled Blu aside, asking him to join her to discuss about something.

"What's wrong?" started Blu.

"I just realized that the kids are starting to become independent, as in starting to become capable of taking care of themselves now, but with some help from us. Look, they're… well, _sort of_ getting along now, not too playful or like to argue anymore." explained Jewel.

They turned to observe Carla, Bia and Tiago, each one helping each other: Carla asked about the "mood" of her planned dance moves, Bia says that it's perfect, but Tiago says that it's rather too dizzy to look at as most of the dance moves includes spinning around. Bia asked about for the number of species of animals they saw or observed so far during their cruise to make a survey and was peppered by various responses by Carla and Tiago: "Ooh! A blue butterfly! A… what was that called? A-ha! A capybara! And a tiger! And, and…".

"And… so?" asked Blu, returning to their topic.

Jewel gave him a faintly melancholic smile, knowing how he would react, then said "I'm thinking that soon, it may be time to let them explore the outdoors without our supervision."

Blu was stunned. "What? By _themselves_?! I-I… I can't… I just can't bear it if… we lost them. I just can't."

Jewel's expression and tone changed to a reassuring one, then replied "I know. That's why I'm discussing it with you. I'm not entirely sure that they are _totally_ independent yet, but they'll learn. We can watch them discreetly during their first few outings into the outdoors so we can help them, or at least warn them if they're heading straight into a trap or danger."

Blu took a deep breath, then took a moment to collect his fragmented thoughts which he was contemplating. "No. No, that's not it. Remember when I tried to tell you about my past?"

Jewel could hardly recall what he had told her almost a year ago. He had said something about losing his parents before being reluctantly smuggled into Minnesota. When Jewel tried to ask about his parents, he just shrugged and said that he doesn't have any knowledge or memory about his parents, although spending time with his family in the Amazon Rainforest had helped to recover mere fragments of memories about his childhood, but not enough fragments were gathered to solve the puzzle of his parents.

"Yeah… That's rather painful to hear, but…"

"Exactly. If they… I… If they suffer the same fate like I did while I was young, imagine what would happen to them? What would they feel? Alone, with the knowledge that they may never return to their home or see their relatives again?"

Jewel cracked a smile. "Well… I got lucky. What you said _generally_ applied to me, but I got lucky and managed to rediscover my homeland again."

Blu sighed and tried to hide his worry. "Yeah, you're right. I think… I think that they at least deserve a chance. But at the first sign of traps or humans, I'm pulling the plug, okay?"

As he finished his sentence, Eduardo crept onto the empty space beside them. Blu started to feel nervous. Did he say anything wrong?

To his surprise, Eduardo gave a sympathetic look to Blu, then gently said "I didn't know about this part. No wonder you were so happy to be with a human for companionship, even though that human isn't exactly one of your kind."

Blu slowly took a deep breath, thinking carefully about his next words. "It was tough, but it was necessary. I was unable to fly back then, so I couldn't just… fly away. I quickly learned that Linda was the only one that cared for me, so I tried to build a connection with her. My parents… Well… I try to avoid talking about this. As I said, I know next to nothing about them. I was too young to understand back then, and too emotional for me to explain exactly how… my experience was.

Rafael, ever-positive as always, emerged from the lower part of the top deck, then said "Don't worry, Blu. Part of being a wild bird is to always know that when times are tough, there is always hope. What is that phrase that humans use…?"

Bia overheard this from the bottom part of the deck, and wondered aloud: "Hmm… How about "every cloud has a silver lining"?"

"That's it! Thanks, kid!".

"You're welcome!" came the clipped reply.

"Anyway, you also already have a family of your own, so loosen up! There's nothing to be ashamed of!"

Blu tightened his expression, then said "I… suppose you're right. I just want the best for my family, and I'll try my best to achieve that."

Rafael beamed with pride. "Now, that's the spirit!"

Blu suppressed a yawn. "Oh well. It's getting late. We should all get some sleep. We've got a long way to go tomorrow.

Eduardo nodded, then gestured to Rafael to follow him to a find a place on the deck to sleep. Jewel yawned softly, then said, "I think I'll stay up for a little while and let the kids sleep first. You can get some sleep."

Blu gently declined, saying "No, I think I'll follow your lead. I am sleepy, but not that sleepy."

"Oh, come on, you still have to get some rest for tomorrow's journey!"

"How about you?"

"I can take care of myself."

Blu's expression changed to a playful one, then said "No, no, no. I'm pretty sure that you're going to use that as an excuse so I'll carry your butt all the way to Brasília, pretty much the same way I did when I saved you from falling a few years ago."

Jewel blushed. It was the first time she flew without having to fly under her own power. She also remembered how selfless he had been, risking his life to save her by jumping out of the plane, even though he hadn't known how to fly at that time.

After a moment, Jewel found her voice again and said "Okay. But make sure you don't sleep on the job."

"What, me? I won't. Unless you told me to, or until the kids are asleep."

"We'll see about that."

Jewel gestured for Blu to follow, heading to where Carla, Bia and Tiago still sat, talking intensely about something with "colours and explosions".

"Kids, bedtime!"


	4. Chapter 4 - Arrival

Two days later, the travellers finally arrive at the famous city of Rio de Janeiro – though how Kipo and Luiz managed to keep up, no one knew – and as they surveyed the city from the top of the _Cristo Redentor_ statue. Blu had no problem with the air, but Jewel had some problems, gagging every now and then.

Blu took a deep breath, then said: "Ah… I'd forgotten how city air smelled like!"

Jewel gagged once more, then snorted. "Ack! I'd rather not be reminded of city air! The air of the Amazon's so much better than this! So much pollution everywhere!"

Blu shrugged. "Oh well, at least there isn't that many dangers than there were in the jungle…"

Jewel rolled her eyes. "We're used to it."

Luiz, on the other hand, had other things to worry about. "Guys, someone, anyone?! Get me down, please! I'm afraid of heights!"

Bia noted this, then supplied: "Technically, the correct term would be "acrophobia"."

Kipo struggled to maintain his balance as Luiz clung on to his legs, squirming frantically. "Dude! If you keep moving around like that, you'll bring both of us down the hard way!"

Pedro decided to cut in. Pedro started: "Guys, sorry to break the party, but me, Nico, Rafael, Eva, Luiz and Kipo would like to check out Paradise first before we do anything else. We'll catch up with you guys later."

Luiz yelped. "Anything but being on the top of the _Cristo Redentor_!"

Paradise was the name of the birds' samba club he and Nico owned, but they had left it unattended since they went along with Blu and Jewel to the Amazon Rainforest, leaving the club to Tiny to take care of.

Nico agreed. "Yeah, and who knows what they could have done in one year?"

Rafael replied: "I'm sure it's in pretty good condition."

Pedro snorted. "Naw-uh. Knowin' the dancers, the club's probably a _disaster_ by now. To them, a club's a club, no matter its condition."

Rafael shrugged. "Sounds okay to me."

"Unless you're the one who has to clean it up." Nico added.

Jewel cut in, saying "Okay, okay. You all can go check out Paradise first if you want to. The Birdhouse's probably caked with dust by now, so we'll probably need some time to clean up."

Pedro nodded. "Okay, suit yourself!"

At this, Pedro, Nico, Rafael, Eva, Luiz and Kipo went their own way, chattering about the condition of Paradise as they flew.

Blu, Jewel, Carla, Bia, Tiago and Eduardo remained on the top, admiring the landscape a little longer before continuing their journey to The Birdhouse, which nested on a nearby tree at Linda and Tulio's house.


	5. Chapter 5 - The Search

After rummaging around _Livraria Blu_ for a few hours fruitlessly looking for any books about any natural causes of ecosystem disruption or fluctuation, Linda and Tulio decided to look for anything worth reading in their house's attic, since Linda usually stores all her old books there.

During their search, Linda spotted something glimmering in the corner of her eye, illuminated by the last rays of sunlight filtering through the attic's window. She stepped over to the glimmering light and dug it out from beneath a large box.

The light came from the gilded corners of an old photo album, but its cover was caked with dust. As she swept off the dust with one hand, she gasped.

What she just discovered was an old photo album… full of photos from when Blu was still a very young chick. She finished dusting off the book's cover, then took a moment to compose herself. It was still a memorable moment, albeit a nostalgic one.

She flashed back to when she was still young: while she was taking a walk during a cold winter, a truck had skidded and the cargo door opened, letting a box tumble out. She walked over to the box and uncovered it, revealing a blue chick, shivering in the cold weather. She didn't have any idea what else to do with it, but little did she know that he was going to be his best friend.

As she turned the cover, memories flooded back to her. Her 9th birthday with friends and Blu; the moment when she fed Blu for the first time. She smiled, and tears welled up in her eyes. She turned the page, and more memories flooded back.

There was when she won the Literary Society Spelling Bee, with Blu perched on the trophy, giving a wide smile; and there was her first promenade dance, with Blu perched on her shoulder. There was also a photo strip showing them in a photo booth, making silly faces. Linda managed a faint smile. The photo strip was one of her favourites, as they had challenged themselves to make many, many silly faces. However, deep inside her, she felt sad.

Tulio noticed that something was wrong when he heard that the rummaging noise has stopped, so he turned and noticed that she was shivering slightly. He walked over, being careful to not suddenly disturb her. As he looked over her shoulder, he realized what was wrong.

Tulio gently said: "Hey…"

Linda continued to cry silently, slowly turning page after page of memories.

"I know you're thinking of Blu. It's okay to share your problems, if you want to." Tulio continued.

Linda straightened, then turned to face Tulio. "I… I-I wasn't…" She sighed.

"I… was indeed thinking of Blu. I've never been away from him for so long before. I've become so accustomed to his presence that… I feel really uncomfortable and lonely without him around. That's… what I felt for the last few months." Linda confessed.

"It's okay. He's now all grown up. He has more duties in his life to take care of, and also others of his kind to keep him company. He's not alone. He now has his family to take care of. His family will also take care of him, too."

Linda took a moment to contemplate her thoughts, then finally managed to rise to her feet.

"I hope you're right."

Just then, Tulio's phone rang. Linda frowned. "Really? Now? Who is it?"

Tulio pulled out his phone, and his face paled. It was Fernando. Usually, he wouldn't call unless something serious was going on.

He tapped the "Call" button and relayed the conversation to speaker. "Fernando, what's wrong? We're still looking for any information about the-"

Fernando cut him off. "No time! While you were gone, I sneaked into your office and looked for more signs of any anomalies of the Amazon Rainforest… And I found something. This isn't just something small; I have a feeling that it's something big, though at the moment, it's only suspicious."

Linda yelped. "You _what_?! I thought I told you not to go into our office! Do you _know_ how many sensitive documents are in there?"

Tulio gave her a gentle "shush" gesture, then whispered to her: "Give him some time. At least he's doing his duties perfectly."

He turned to the phone, then said "What is it?"

Having anticipated this, Fernando answered this in a split second. "Sector D-6, the easternmost region of the Amazon Rainforest. All animal wildlife there seems to have diminished by 90 percent."

Linda and Tulio's voices filled the attic. "WHAT?! _90_ percent?!"

The sound of clattering plastic filled the speaker, followed by the sound of plastic scraping across a surface. Fernando's frantic voice came next. "Yeesh, can you two keep the noise down? Security's probably looking for me right now. I should be in the kitchens right now, preparing the birds' seed mixes."

Linda shot a look at Tulio, like " _what did you just say five seconds ago?_ ". Tulio glanced back at Linda, then said: "Okay… So maybe he isn't that responsible after all."

He turned to the phone, then replied: "Okay, okay. But quickly pack up. We're on the next flight to Manaus _right now_. As for your current "situation", I'll phone Security and tell them that you're temporarily reassigned. I'll also tell the Blu Bird Sanctuary's Carecuru River Outpost to send a helicopter to pick us up at Manaus's airport. Hurry; we'll pick you up and go straight to the airport an hour after this."

"Okay. I'll get started."

A click sounded, and the phone call ended.

Linda and Tulio quickly lunged for the ladder to exit the attic and collapsed into a heap on the floor with a loud "BOOM", groaning.

Linda commented: "So much for a dramatic entrance..."

They took a moment to regain their bearings, then quickly scrambled to their feet and started to pack up frantically.


	6. Chapter 6 - Really? Now!

Naturally, things went downhill as not long after they arrived. When Blu, Jewel, Carla, Bia and Tiago arrived at the Birdhouse, they were surprised to find that it was in remarkably good condition, but still slightly dusty.

After some observation, Bia commented: "Hey, the Birdhouse was last dusted… I think the closest I can get is to… a month ago…? The density of dust on the floor suggests so."

"Yeah, if it was inhabited or untouched for a year, I think that it would be _really_ dusty." Carla agreed.

However, Eduardo was having second thoughts. "And I thought that your home in Rio was decent. I mean, look at it! It's so cramped in there!"

Jewel winced. She forgot that her dad was used to open spaces, even in his home.

"Uh, yeah… That's… a problem. Sorry, daddy. We're used to this before we moved to the Tribe."

Eduardo sighed. "At least the vegetation nearby is-"

His words were cut short when they saw Tulio rushing through a corridor in one of the house's many windows, closely followed by Linda. They appeared to be carrying large boxes on trolleys.

Blu gave Jewel a concerned glance. "What are they up to?"

Jewel kept her eye on Linda and Tulio, but replied: "I don't know. They seem to be... _preparing_ for something."

This puzzles Blu even more. Why, or more precisely, _what_ are they preparing for?

As Linda and Tulio burst through the front door, the birds watched in dismay as they loaded the boxes – no, _luggage bags_ onto the back of Tulio's new Jeep, then quickly dashed back into the house.

"What was that all about?" Blu asked.

Just then, a thought struck him.

Blu groaned. "Oh, _no_. Please don't say they're leaving. Just as we arrive? Really?"

He glided onto the truck's back, trying to investigate just what they were packing.

The semi-transparent plastic material of the luggage bag made it hard to see what was inside the luggage bag, but on closer inspection…

"Clothes? So they _are_ going somewhere after all…" pondered Blu.

Just then, Linda and Tulio emerged from the house, carrying a piece of large equipment out of the house. Apparently, it was very heavy as were visibly straining to carry it.

"Are you absolutely sure that old-model radios are better than new ones?" asked Linda.

"Of course! These old radios are more resistant than new ones, but I'll bring a new one, just in case." said Tulio.

When Linda glanced at the back of the truck to orient herself, she notices Blu inspecting the luggage and immediately drops the radio, running towards Blu.

"CLANK!" went the radio and "Ow!" yelped Tulio at the same time.

"Oh my… Blu?! You're not supposed to be here! How…?" said Linda, hugging Blu.

"Blu? Isn't he supposed to be back at the Sanctuary at the Amazon Rainforest, with the rest of the Spix's Macaw Tribe?" asked Tulio.

"Well, what a coincidence. We were just about to embark to the Amazon Rainforest." continued Tulio.

Blu sneaked a glance at the Birdhouse. Jewel and Eduardo both returned it with a nod. They were able to hear their conversation.

Linda turned back to Tulio, who was still struggling to lift the radio on one side, and quickly dashed towards him.

"Tulio! Sorry, I was stunned by Blu's presence."

Together, they loaded the heavy radio onto the Jeep.

Linda and Tulio were pulling hard for breath.

Linda commented: "Well, at least the radio is on the Jeep now…"

"Not so fast, we still have the backup to go."

Linda groaned.

"Don't worry, I can take it myself." said Tulio.

This puzzled Linda. They could _barely_ lift the radio together. It seemed inconceivable that Tulio could carry _that thing_ by himself.

He went back into the house, then took out what looked like a handheld radio.

Linda fumed. "That old radio weighted like 25 pounds, and _now_ you show me the easier way to do it."

"2 pounds, to be exact! However, I won't be using this unless the old one breaks."

Linda allowed Blu to perch on her shoulder.

"Anyway, Blu, what are you _doing_ in Rio? Shouldn't you be with the rest of the Tribe with Jewel and the kids?" asked Linda.

Blu gestured with his wings to the Birdhouse, and the conservationists glanced to the birds' summer home to see Jewel, Carla, Bia, Tiago – and surprisingly – Eduardo.

"Okay… Maybe he wasn't alone." Tulio said.

Linda elbowed him, then said, "What did you just say 10 minutes ago?"

"Oh, right. Sorry."

"Um… Anyway, Blu… We're going to the Amazon Rainforest. The easternmost part of the rainforest seems to have been disturbed. All wildlife there, such as _Ara macao_ , has been moving out of the area. Do you know anything about this?"

Blu was impressed at how much Linda had picked up on wildlife in just a year, thanks to Tulio, but on the downside, he had to think harder to decipher what she was talking about.

"Hmm… _Ara macao_ are… Scarlet Macaws! And the easternmost region of the rainforest… What does the easternmost region have to do with Scarlet Macaws…?" Blu wondered.

Then, a lightbulb lit up in his mind.

" _The easternmost region is home to the Scarlet Macaw Tribe!_ That's what Felipe told Eduardo when he was asked to oversee the Spix's Macaw Tribe!" said Blu, nodding his head vigorously.

Tulio's eyes widened. He understood what Blu meant, thanks to a year of vocal analysis of the Spix's Macaws. Linda still remained puzzled, so Tulio quickly paraphrased what Blu meant.

" _Ara macao_. Nearby the Spix's Macaw Tribe resides the Scarlet Macaw Tribe at the _easternmost region_ of the rainforest. Got it?"

Linda suddenly understood, and Tulio glanced at his watch. " _Meu deus_! We're 10 minutes late! Quick, we need to get Fernando to the airport now, or we'll miss our flight!"

Linda protested. "Wait, what about Blu and his family?"

Tulio hesitated. "Well, I suppose we could bring them along in a travel cage…"

Jewel and Eduardo yelped. " _Not cages_! Anything _but_ cages!" Carla, Bia and Tiago just exchanged confused glances, like "What? There's nothing to it!".

Blu winced. "Uh… yeah… The kids are okay with it, but Jewel and Eduardo… I don't think that they like cages that much. Besides, we have other things to do in Rio de Janeiro."

Tulio translated what he said to Linda, who started to worry. "A-are you sure? I'm… not so comfortable in leaving you alone with your family in Rio."

Blu managed a melancholic smile to Linda. This was going to be the first time that he would be in Rio without Linda, but he reckoned that the summer trip would be short so that he could rejoin him in the Amazon Rainforest. "Sure. I'll catch up with you in a week or so."

Tulio translated this to Linda, who uncertainly said "Okay… But stay safe, okay?"

After Blu promised, Linda and Tulio got into the Jeep and sped off towards Blu Bird Sanctuary's Headquarters. Blu watched longingly as the Jeep gradually faded from sight, shrouded by the chaos of the urban city.

After a moment of silence, Jewel, Carla, Bia, Tiago and Eduardo glided down and perched beside Blu.

"Hey, are you okay…?" asked Jewel, concerned.

Blu tried to hide his upset expression. "Yeah. Pity we arrived at the wrong time, though."

Jewel got an idea. "Why don't we go see how Nico, Pedro, Rafael, Eva, Luiz and Kipo are doing back at their club?"

Blu brightened up. "That's a first. The Birdhouse's already clean, anyway. Nothing much for us to do here."

With that, they started their short flight to Paradise.


	7. Chapter 7 - A Threat Emerges

As usual, the club was booming with activity, but much more than they expected. Blu was impressed that the club was already in remarkably good condition. As the Spix's Macaws entered the birds' samba club, everyone in the group started looking around, except for Blu and Jewel, who had already came here once before.

"Whoa. Look at this place!" admired Eduardo, astonished by the vastness of the interior.

"This is my kind of place to be!" Tiago added.

"Look at this place! So well hidden from common sight, yet so special!" commented Bia.

"I can't believe Uncle Nico and Pedro didn't show us this place, much less say that they run a samba club!" remarked Bia.

Rafael spotted them from above and swooped down beside them.

"You're done cleaning up already? That was fast for a year's worth of disorganisation." said Blu.

"Apparently, the partygoers behaved well. They kept this place spick-and-span while we're away, so we didn't have to waste time. Why are you back so quickly? Did something go wrong?" asked Rafael.

"Actually-" Blu started.

At that moment, Nico and Pedro spotted them and shone a spotlight on them.

"Alright, everyone, listen up! We know it has been almost a year since we danced to good grooves, so let's get this party started!"

From somewhere in the club, the sound of Brazilian percussion started up, quickly forming an average-fast beat while accompanied by faint beatboxing by Pedro, and everyone in the club started to dance.

The Spix's Macaw family, particularly Carla, was impressed by the new "style" they incorporated into their music: jungle, with a faint tinge of modernization ("Yeah, it's all about the mix-n-matching, y'know?" insisted Pedro).

Hearing the beat start up, Blu offered a wing to Jewel, silently asking her if she would dance with him. Jewel smiled, and gladly took his wing. Bia and Tiago were already busy dancing on their own, while Carla _really_ took things to the next level: She took advantage of the moment to improvise her dance moves, closely inspecting the music's style and beat and bobbing her head to the beat, all at the same time. Even Eduardo danced to the music, but – for some reason – kept his movements to a minimum. Some of the birds even managed to sneakily pick out some of the juiciest fruits from several nearby stalls, then ate them shortly afterwards.

As everyone absorbed in the moment, they didn't notice a green flash of movement near the roof of a nearby building; someone was watching, or rather, _stalking_ them – that is, except for Tiny, who was instantly alarmed and tried to tell someone about it, but everyone was busy partying away and didn't pay attention to Tiny.

Naturally, things had to go wrong. As soon as Nico finished the final word of the song, the drapes covering the samba club was lifted, letting in harsh sunlight, while Jewel screamed "Not again!".

Their eyes quickly adjusted to the new light level, and instantly registered a flock of Military Macaws, all with sinister smiles on their faces. They might as well have been insane.

One of the macaws – more crude but strangely smaller than the other macaws – stepped forward. Blu suspected that he is the flock's alpha member – most dominant member and the sole leader of the flock. Blu also figured that it would be best _not_ to be mess with him, judging by the way the other macaws took a few steps back when he stepped forward, or it could also mean that he treated his flock's members rather savagely, causing them to be afraid of his willpower and make it easy for them to retreat.

The only one who doesn't seem intimidated by the Military Macaws' unexpected arrival was Eduardo, who only narrowed his eyes towards their leader.

"Well, well, well. Looks like we have some unfinished business to take care of here, eh?" mocked the leader, surveying the scene. He had a distinctly silky voice, like When he caught sight of Blu, his expression changed to bitter.

Eduardo intervened. "Who are you, and what do you want? We have no "business" for you here."

Some of the flock's members laughed. Their leader just smiled. "Call me Terrin. As for what I want… That's simple." He slowly extended a feather and pointed to Blu. "I have a grudge to settle with _him_."

"What do you intend to do to him? And why?" questioned Eduardo.

"Oh… None of your business. The only thing that you _should_ be concerned about is whether you would yield him to us." replied Terrin, his voice sharpening.

"M-me? What did I do?" asked Blu.

Jewel nudged Blu. "Psst, who _is_ this joker?"

He whispered back: "I don't know! As far as I know, I've never had any problems or encountered him before."

Terrin laughed. "I assume that you're clueless as to who I am, _Blu_ , judging by the way you talk to your… friend." He phrased Blu's name mockingly, as if Blu was a significant threat to him and had done something to him in the past. "Don't worry. Just come with me, and I'll clear up your memory."

Something about the tone of his voice made Blu hesitate. He would surrender to Terrin if it came to protecting his family, but the way he phrased his last sentence was unsettling. Blu was sure that Terrin would mean harm to him.

Eduardo's voice turned serious, almost military-like. "Do not mess with my family. I will make you regret your decision if you ignore me." A few of Terrin's kinsmen backed up, confirming Blu's suspicion.

Terrin narrowed his gaze. " _Your_ family?" His eyes darted back and fourth between Blu, Jewel and Roberto, trying to connect the dots. He flicked his gaze aside, then noticed that three chicks – Carla, Bia and Tiago – were nearby, sneaking expectant gazes towards Blu and Jewel. His smile turned more sinister. "Ah... I see. A family, eh? Interesting."

"How about we strike a deal?" asked Terrin. "Blu steps forward to be our hostage…" He pauses to turn to one of his henchmen, and nods. As he spoke his next sentence, a ring of Military Macaws surrounding Paradise's partygoers closed in. "Or… we take everyone hostage. Fair trade, right?"

Eduardo growled. "You injure _anyone_ in my family, you won't like what happens next. Besides, what's the deal with your size? A tiny pipsqueak ruling over a flock?" he warned, stepping up to Terrin.

That set Terrin off. "You dare insult _me_?! Do you know how many flocks of other birds I've bested with my flock? I can definitely overpower _you_!" As he uttered his final word, he pushed Eduardo back with such force that he flew ten feet and slid to a stop beside Blu and Jewel.

"Hey!" yelled Blu. Jewel was stunned. She had never seen or heard Blu so outraged before, and when she turned to glance at him, she noticed that he now had an intense fire in his eyes, which was unusual, coming from Blu.

Blu helped Eduardo up, then whispered to him: "Here's the plan: I create a distraction, you help Jewel and the kids escape. I'll join you at the Birdhouse. Can you still fly?"

Eduardo was stunned. "Yes, but-"

"No time. Tell the others. I'll buy you about 30 seconds before I spring the distraction." pressed Blu, then turned back to Terrin.

As Eduardo staggered back towards Jewel, Carla, Bia and Tiago, Blu held his ground.

"Why do you need me?" asked Blu.

"Ha! That is not your concern, but I can hint at something: it may have something to do with… your childhood."

Blu froze. He also heard Jewel and Eduardo let out a silent gasp. He had no intention of being captured by Terrin, but his childhood… that was tempting. Until this day, it was one of his life's biggest mysteries, unknown even to him. He could only remember three things that happened during the first few years of his life as mere glimpses: dancing in a tree hollow, falling out of a tree when he was trying to learn to fly, and when he was smuggled in a cramped plane, then truck to Minnesota. He is eager to accept his capture to know more about his childhood, but a word alerted him to possible danger. "May." He intentionally implemented that word, attempting to shroud its true meaning, but it could mean that he might not tell the truth. As he processed this information, trying to decipher its true meaning, he _very slowly_ relaxed, careful not to let Terrin or any of his henchmen notice.

"The past is the past. It doesn't matter anymore." said Blu.

"Oh, really? I expected you to accept that "offer" point-blank, but oh, well. It seems like we have to use… incentive. You have always been a –" Terrin started, but Blu cut him off by unexpectedly crashing onto him, creating the "distraction" they needed. Eduardo, Jewel, Carla, Bia and Tiago instantly spread their wing and took off, headed towards the Birdhouse.

When Blu struck, a fragment of long-lost memory ignited in his thoughts. "Terrin." He _has_ heard it before, but he just couldn't pinpoint exactly where or when he heard it before. Terrin's henchmen rushed forward to subdue Blu. As Blu took off, another question surfaced.

 _Do I follow the flock or do I try to lose them?_

As he glanced back, surveying the numbers of his pursuers, he decided to lose his pursuers himself and let the group get to safety first, rather than risk all of their safety.


	8. Chapter 8 - False Alarm & Improvisation

Peri was pretty surprised to find a few humans wandering dangerously near to the Sanctuary on his first day of patrol. As a result, he nearly caused mass panic throughout the Spix's Macaw Tribe, until Mimi, Roberto and Felipe were alerted to the "problem", and decided to blow some dust off the issue. Only then did their fellow macaws calm down _a little_.

As Mimi and Roberto flew towards the humans, the first thing they did was scout them from a distance. For starters, the small team of two adults and one child didn't seem to dress or carry equipment that loggers usually did (thank goodness, as Roberto did _not_ want a recap of last year's events). Also, they seemed to be wandering vaguely east, which was fairly strange considering the Sanctuary was about north-east of their position. As they got closer, they realized that their clothes bore the official logo of the Blu Bird Sanctuary, meaning that the humans were allies.

Roberto emitted a friendly squawk, which made the humans flinch – nearly making them smack their heads on an overhead branch – and turn around.

Apparently, after a journey of 3 hours and 5 minutes to get from Manaus to Rio, accompanied by a further [miserable] 7 hours and 56 minutes on boat, the small group of conservationists had arrived in the Amazon Rainforest to inspect the potential threat, even though they were exhausted by the 11 hours of travel they had to endure.

 _Meanwhile…_

Blu was seriously starting to regret _not_ following the flock. One macaw versus… twenty or so hostile military macaws? Piece of cake! It's like trying to grab a wig in a tornado (assuming the tornado was a flock of macaws), but divert your attention for even a moment, and you get something else. In Blu's case, that "something else" was a near-miss experience with a power transformer _and_ a streetlight (at least it got two macaws off his tail – _literally_ , otherwise they would've missed). But dealing with this issue for half an hour straight wasn't so pleasant after all.

 _Okay… So evasive manoeuvres… not so effective, but I'll use it as a last resort if nothing else comes to mind._

As he flew, tailoring unpredictable flight patterns through the urban city of Rio – being careful not to accidentally run smack into an obstacle – he forced his mind to divide into two parts: one to plot his course, another to come up with plans.

 _Time to start thinking about properties and kick my mind into high gear._ He guided his mind to remember facts about macaws which he spent _months_ researching in Blu Macaw Books.

 _First off: Hearing. Macaws have a comparatively smaller hearing range compared to humans, but possess the ability to focus sounds._ Nope. Assuming he found a way to make loud sounds, he still wouldn't know whether it would work. Besides, it might backfire and affect him instead.

 _Next up: Taste. Wait. This isn't even relevant to my precarious situation!_

 _Smell: Parrots have_ _olfactory organs that are better developed than other birds, but not extraordinary._ Nope. Even if he managed to make himself smell like a sewer, he doubted that that would throw the Military Macaws off.

 _Eyesight: almost 360 degrees' coverage in both hemispheres-_

Suddenly, a flash in Blu's memories caught his attention, but just as quickly as it occurred, it disappeared.

 _Eyesight._ That word resonated in his memories, homing in onto a faint memory, but unrecognizable with his current level of effort.

"Hmm… Wait. There's something… familiar. What is it…" Blu strained to recover the memory, but…

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" he yelped as he nearly got entangled in a power cable and dived sharply down. His pursuers squawked to alert their allies, but a macaw that reacted slightly slower than the others hit the cable with a "Oof!" and fell onto a market stall's canopy, bouncing across stall after stall.

He tried to concentrate again, and this time, the glimpse of light reappeared and intensified, shrouding his mind's eye in an occurrence that happened less than a year ago.

"C'mon! The mud is your strength! This is your camouflage! Feel it! Taste it! You don't feel rusty, you're not doing it right! You don't wanna be seen by humans!" came Eduardo's voice.

"Come on! Are you a–"

 _Okay, okay! I get it, Eduardo!_ Blu nearly yelled out loud as he remembered his rigorous "military training" that he was given when they arrived at the Spix's Macaw Tribe.

 _That's it! Camouflage! All I have to do is put some distance between me and my pursuers and blend in with my environment! Now, how do I lose them…_

First, he tried to visualize a satellite view of the region. Nope. Too complicated.

Just as he was starting to think about increasing his speed, he realized that he was still wearing his fanny pack. _Of course! The GPS!_

A quick "Nearby" search revealed that the biggest market in Rio was the _Feira Hippie de Ipanema_ , otherwise known as the Ipanema Hippie Fair. Blu wasn't so sure for the "Hippie" part, but "the biggest market in Rio"? Jackpot!

He shoved the GPS back into the fanny pack ("Sorry, GPS lady,") and beelined for the market, a flock of screaming Military Macaws a few meters behind.


	9. Chapter 9 - Sneaky Beaky Like

**Chapter Nine**

When he got to the Fair a few hours later, Blu was pretty surprised at the chaos surrounding him. If he thought that the market where Nico and Pedro's samba club is located at was a disaster, then this was an absolute catastrophe (which is ten times worse). Every _square foot_ of the promenade was occupied with either a market stall, a hawker or an enthusiastic buyer. Perfect!

When Blu glanced back, he noticed that his pursuers are about 50 meters behind him, all starting to show slightly laboured breathing (as far as he can tell from a distance), but if they caught up, there won't be any escaping. Some of them had a determined mask of frustration as they looked at Blu, which wasn't a good sign either. Even though he had flown almost 5 kilometres, Blu didn't feel out of shape and silently thanked Eduardo for his "military training". He momentarily considered outflying them, but he wouldn't know if they had any nearby reinforcements. Besides, he had already arrived at the Ipanema Hippie Fair, so it would be kind a strenuous waste of brainpower.

 _Time to get my plan in action._

Thankfully, it had rained a few hours ago (just before they set off), so the ground was full of muddy puddles. First, Blu emerged from below the line of sellers' stalls, briefly confusing his pursuers. When Terrin first told his henchmen to get him, he was tempted to scream out of frustration that their size were out of his league, but now, it finally paid off. Being small, he had full control of his manoeuvres, so he easily dodged the jungle of support beams under the stalls. The Military Macaws? Not so much. They may be fast in a straight line, but turn it into an obstacle course and you get a ton of screaming macaws. Many yelped as they smacked head-first into some of the support beams, causing the tables to rattle and products to fall off the stalls while making Blu wince.

As he emerged at the other end, he dropped off his fanny pack on the edge of the stalls' line, shielding it from view by the stalls' shadows, and beelined for a puddle.

As he dived into the puddle, it became stupidly obvious that he didn't plan carefully enough, even Blu wanted to kick himself. Hot surrounding temperatures, combined with recent rainfall? You get ice-cold puddles. One of which Blu _just splashed into_. The cold stung like crazy, but he barely managed to coated his entire plumage with mud being careful not to leave any bare spots.

As if on cue, his pursuers (well, those that managed to pass the obstacle course) finally popped out from a line of stalls, muttering curses and quickly scanned the area. One of the five or so macaws looked straight at Blu, his eyes narrowing. Blu flew off, his heart beating like crazy. His onlooker decided to dismiss Blu and continued to join his brethren, flying over the market to survey the area. His plan had worked, against all odds!

As the military macaws flew off to another area of the Fair, Blu decided to give them the slip. He zipped back, quickly refastened his fanny pack, and took off for the Birdhouse.


	10. Chapter 10 - Mysterious Disappearance

**Chapter Ten**

After four more miserable hours of flying (a macaw coated in dried mud isn't exactly aerodynamic or easily airborne), Blu finally arrived at the Birdhouse. Strangely enough, as he approached the area, there was _no one_ there.

"Uh, Jewel, Eduardo? Kids?" asked Blu nervously.

Silence.

Except his GPS. It squawked: "You have reached your destination."

Blu groaned. "Great. Thanks, GPS lady."

As he looked around, Blu started to panic. Random scenarios and possibilities raced through his mind, none of them good. But he feared the worst: Terrin had discovered them and taken them hostage. As he tried to calm himself, he started to pace around, looking for any clues. As he uncovered several discoveries, the scenarios and possibilities that rolled around in his mind gradually narrowed down.

Blu's first discovery: There were none of Carla, Bia or Eduardo's equipment or belongings left behind. Blu had drilled into the kids' minds that they leave a clue or their belongings behind to alert him of danger if something happened to them. That meant that either Terrin's henchmen were more intelligent then he thought (though highly doubtful) and also took the "clues" along, or that they had _intentionally_ left.

Blu's second discovery: Everything seems to be the same from when they first arrived, ruling out the possibility a fight or scuffle. Not even a patch of flattened grass, which would indicate that a heavy flock of macaws have recently landed here. So it _wasn't_ Terrin. The only other possibility was that they had _intentionally_ left. _But why?_

Blu's third discovery: A faint shape of an arrow pointing vaguely north-northwest (identified with the assistance of Blu's GPS, which would _not_ shut up and kept narrating everything every time he tapped the screen) has been scratched into the Birdhouse's ledge, which Blu found slightly odd. A quick search on the GPS didn't reveal any points of interest in that direction. All _except_ for one: the Blu Bird Sanctuary's Headquarters, barely half an hour's flight away (for a macaw without mud issues). It was very likely that they went there to seek refuge for the time being now that Terrin now knows that they are part of his family. Not a bad idea. Eduardo could use the-

 _Eduardo!_ Blu had almost forgotten about him. _The impact force of his weight combined with Terrin's inflicted push should be enough to warrant minor damage to-_

Blu shook his head to clear off the specifics. _Nevermind. Long story short: He's injured. It's unlikely he could make fly for an hour and thirty minutes with his injuries, but I_ have _to hope that he did. It's the only place that he can get help, now that Nico and Pedro's club is ambushed._

Looking around one last time, he set off, headed towards a new destination: The Blu Bird Sanctuary.


	11. Chapter 11 - Rest

**Chapter Ten**

Even when the Blu Bird Sanctuary's Headquarters came into view on the horizon, Blu kept whipping his head from side to side, vigilant for any sign of Terrin's henchmen – he guessed that Terrin would [naturally] go ballistic the moment his henchmen reported that they lost him – which wasn't easy, considering Blu had been flying for literally almost 8 hours. Non-stop. Well, excluding his brief "stop" at the _Feira Hippie de Ipanema_.

As he neared the building, he noticed that there was a lot of activity going on in one of the facility's designated wildlife healthcare rooms, which made Blu a little suspicious. Noticing the hustle-and-bustle, Blu lowered his flight, trying to get a clear view. A lot of health-monitoring equipment was also set up, each displaying a torrent of data, which seemed to Blu as. A glimpse of blue feathers momentarily stood out from the crowd, then vanished, shrouded from view by the many veterinarians scrambling about.

Blinded by a blend of relief and worry, he beelined through the windows of the building and headed straight for where he last saw the blue feathers.

And lying on the treatment table… was Eduardo. Jewel, Carla, Bia and Tiago were perched nearby, overlooking the scene with great concern.

When the veterinarians spotted Blu coming in to land, they all went like, "Whoa!" and backed up in surprise and disbelief. As Blu landed, he stumbled and collapsed. Jewel seemed surprised to see him.

"Ow…" groaned Blu.

"What in the world…?" Jewel rushed over and helped him up.

"What happened? Did something go wrong? Why did you leave?" asked Blu.

"The kids got bored of waiting, and my dad doesn't look so good, so we decided to get help. He's currently being treated by the vete… whatever they're called. I don't understand what they're talking about at all; try asking Bia. She mostly understands their medical language. Also, what _happened_ to you?" demanded Jewel, scrutinizing his muddy plumage.

"Long story. Your dad's advice really helped."

Jewel stared at him, uncomprehending. Then she laughed. "Ah, I see. That explains it. How'd you find us?"

"Someone left an arrow pointing here at the Birdhouse. The GPS lady told me that that this is the direction to go."

Jewel sighed. "I thought told you not to trust that woman…?"

"She's still reliable."

Jewel gave Blu a look. "Last year?"

"Well… _most_ of the time."

Blu awkwardly looked away and turn to Bia, tilting his head slightly. "How's pop-pop?"

"They tend to use their medical "language" as exaggeration, but I think he's fine. The only injuries they found were some ruffled feathers, bruises and a few minor cuts… so far."

"And… what's with the sheer amount of personnel?"

Bia just shrugged. "I think Linda and Tulio gave them the "just in case Spix's Macaws arrive here" scenario training and made them set us as top priority, assess injuries, document studies/behaviour, make us comfortable while we're here, that kind of thing, assuming we're okay with staying, which we are."

Jewel exchanged a look with Blu.

"Well… maybe not Mom." Bia corrected. Carla and Tiago snickered.

Blu glanced towards Carla and Tiago's direction, and noticed that Tiago was playing around with a fabric ball the vets placed nearby. Carla was listening to her iPod, but she seemed seemed slightly unsettled. She didn't seem like wanting to share her concerns. Otherwise, they seemed fine.

Blu walked over to Eduardo. A veterinarian was examining his feathers.

"Hey… are you okay…?" Blu asked slowly.

Eduardo glanced at Blu and gave him a proud look.

"You remembered your training well, I see." Eduardo commented.

"Seriously, diving into an icy-cold muddy puddle wasn't exactly my idea. How about you?"

Eduardo sighed. "They're overreacting. I'm fine, but they've been examining me for close to half an hour. I'm not really that used to humans yet, except Linda and Tulio."

Blu rolled his eyes. "Apart from the Tribe, there's literally no other known living members of _Cyanopsitta spixii_. Better safe than sorry."

Eduardo just stared blankly at him. "Uh. In English?"

Blu blinked. "It _is_ English. Oh, wait. You mean _simplified_ English. Apart from the Tribe, there's literally no other known extant populations of our kind. They're overreacting to keep us safer than we should."

Eduardo nodded. "Understandable. Wait, what about the macaws?"

"I gave the Military Macaws the slip. Thank goodness the Ipanema Hippie Fair was ongoing."

""Hippie"?" questioned Eduardo.

"Long story. Don't ask. All I cared about was the level of activity in the fair." explained Blu.

"How about you? You don't look too good yourself."

"Well, let's see. I did some fancy flying tricks, dived into a–"

"Not that. You look like you've been flying for several hours non-stop, with a brief stop somewhere in between."

Blu shot him a dirty look. "That because I _have_ been flying for several hours non-stop, with a brief stop at the _Feira Hippie de Ipanema_."

Eduardo nodded slowly. "That explains your exhausted look and your stumbling walking pattern."

""Stumbling"?"

"Yeah. Haven't you noticed?" asked Eduardo.

Blu tried walking around. Yep. He was definitely hobbling around, although he didn't remember colliding into anything during his escape. The nearby veterinarians studied him closely, making notations on their clipboards.

Eduardo's expression softened. "You must have overworked your body. You _have_ to rest." He gestured to some bedding material nearby. "You'll just injure yourself needlessly if you push yourself in this state."

Blu was surprised. " _What_? We now have a _villain_! On our tails! And you're telling me to sleep in the middle of danger?"

Eduardo rolled his eyes. "What's all around us?"

After a short survey around, Blu replied: "Humans."

"That's right. Although they were my _former_ worst fear…" Eduardo shuddered slightly. "They can protect us for the time being until we recover. It's a _sanctuary_ , after all. It would be pretty useless if they couldn't protect birds, hence their name " _Blu_ Bird Sanctuary"."

Blu glanced at Eduardo. "Uh… and when did you learn to read?"

Eduardo chuckled. "Bia does. She talked about for quite a while: the place's origins, naming, and more. Enough small talk. Get some rest. You'll need it."

Blu shrugged, and hobbled over to a nearby pile of bedding.

The last thing he remembered was collapsing onto the edge of the bedding material, unable to move further.


End file.
